Dan Mikkelson to Retire From Valley Queen After 33 Years

Dan Mikkelson will retire from Valley Queen on December 31. Mikkelson, who grew up in Milbank and graduated with the MHS Class of 1976, has been an employee at Valley Queen for 33 years. An open house retirement party will be held on Friday, December 29, at 5 p.m. at the Speedway Event Center in downtown Milbank.

Mikkelson started his career at Valley Queen as an intake utility on November 5, 1990. He began by learning all of the different milk routes and filled in for other drivers while they were on vacation.

In 1994, he obtained his fieldman’s license for South Dakota and Minnesota and started working as a field representative. As a field rep, he worked with Valley Queen dairy producers in northwestern Iowa and southwestern Minnesota to provide onsite technical support, product installation, and customer service. Over the years, he acquired many friends and cultivated many long-term relationships.

In 2012, Mikkelson received certification as an evaluator for the FARM Animal Care Program. As an evaluator, he was trained to conduct second-party animal care, environmental stewardship, and workforce development evaluations on behalf of FARM participants. Working alongside dairy producers, he helped to identify strengths and outline areas for improvement in all areas of the program.

Mikkelson also began serving as the president of the South Dakota Fieldman’s Association in 2005 – a position he continues to hold. He will retire from that post at the end of 2023.